Early to Rise “I want to be on the road by 6.” Big words from my friend who usually wakes at 11. Up by 6 though, we got the essentials done. We made banana pancakes and since we forgot to get maple syrup, we concocted a peanut butter and almond milk “syrup” that seemed like […]
The Cheering Section The first person I knew really well who died was my friend Christopher’s mother. Carole was the mother hen, really, of our town. Everyone knew her, and if there was ever a house where we needed to have a party or an event for a school function, she was quick to offer […]
A Good Age I don’t think he really meant to hit her very hard. It was still a little difficult to watch, though also a little comical. A child I guessed was about nine months old was tottering on his mother’s lap in the boarding area. She was trying to get him to stand, but […]
There and Back Again It was a great blessing to have some time for rejuvenation! Because I know how much we all love seeing pictures of a vacations…here are some from mine. There are only 10, so I am not taxing you all too much.
A Banner Day Greetings from the sweltering Pacific Northwest! With temperatures at or around 108 degrees the past few days, it’s been quite an adventure so far. Now I know what some of you are thinking: “Good heavens, leave us alone. We’re on vacation from you!” And that’s a fair thought. But a few of […]
The Big Fuss It’s funny how the older I get, the more I find myself saying things around my birthday like, “It’s really only a number,” or “I don’t know where the time went.” When I was younger, the ticking off of another year really meant something. It marked a right of passage or maybe […]
Sole Work It looked so inviting. There between what looked like rocks were two open channels out to the breaking surf. We wondered if we could body surf the break out there or if it would be too strong. There was only one way to find out. We swam to the rocks and saw that […]
Taking the Hint “Are you OK?” I didn’t know why he was asking me that. Maybe he saw me wipe out on my wave and was concerned. I’m not an expert surfer to say the very least. I am not even a novice surfer. I think I’d have to stand up more than once or […]
“Great” Grace “I can’t stop smiling. I am now a great uncle.” This is a text I awoke to from one of my closest friends. His niece gave birth to a beautiful new baby and that made him a “great” uncle. The joy I know he is feeling over welcoming this new human into his […]
A Life’s Work Do you know what I didn’t like growing up? Homework. Especially math homework. If my mother could have back the hours that it took to get me to do my math homework, she could have earned another degree. I don’t even have a great excuse for why I didn’t do my math […]
I Always Will He was always tinkering with his car. That’s one of the things that he always talked about. This piece is supposed to come in by that time. This friend has a lift so I can get the piece on the car. When he stayed with me and my family in Washington before […]
Personal Day Aloha Friends, Some of you likely picked up in the sermon that I surprised an uninvited visitor in my home last week who was trying to make off with some of my belongings and the belongings of my friend. After giving chase and retrieving all of my belongings, I had a lot more […]
Turn in Your Homework I had a little problem growing up. It was completely self made, and no matter what my parents and my teachers did, every so often it would come back. I was one of those kids who just wouldn’t do his homework. I would have periods where I’d do better, and it […]
To Make Fire There is the old story of the fire maker.* Once upon a time, many years ago, in a place not too different from where we are now, a wise and loving woman had special knowledge. She knew how to make fire. This woman’s compassion for those in the towns around her was […]
Inch by Inch The thunderclap was ominous. I don’t hear as much thunder on Oahu as in other places I’ve lived. And when I hear it, there is usually rain close behind. As I exited the church after the 10 am service, I saw the gray patch on the otherwise bald sky and I wondered […]
Together Again Friends, I am going to take this time of my weekly message for something a little different. I want to explain some of what I’ve been up to for the past year in my free time and over a few study leaves. Over the summer I began writing a book in response to […]
To Love Alike The friend I have had the longest in my life lives in Boulder. One of my best high school friends does, too. They both have children. Blessedly, they live in a part of Boulder that has its own fancy grocery store where they shop. So when I saw the news that a […]
The Life for Me It’s been a while since I’ve been afraid of pirates. I remember the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World that I visited when I as young. I also remember a cassette tape and picture book my parents gave me with songs sung by…well…pirates. They weren’t real pirates. They were […]
To The Moon It must have been a terrifying experience. The clouds gathered. The winds picked up. And the water began to rise. It must have been hard to build a boat in the rain, a boat big enough to weather the storm, to withstand the flooding. And it must have been scary to try […]
In The Garden It’s so quiet there. The view from the road around it contains the very embodiment of the patience of a saint. If only the same could be said for the viewer, me. It’s the day before the first game to be played in Les Murakami Stadium in more than a year, and […]
